Police Ombudsman Sarah Bolt has warned complaints lodged with her office could take up to six months before they are assessed and has taken a swipe at Attorney-General John Rau over funding for her office.

Denyse, who did not want her surname published, provided the letters to The Advertiser after contacting the Police Ombudsman to inquire why her matter - initially expected to be investigated by August - was yet to be finalised.

In a letter dated January 23, 2014, Ms Bolt stated that Denyse’s complaint had been allocated to a legal officer and, if she was unhappy about the delay, to “write to the Attorney-General and suggest that my office be better resourced”.

“The resources of my office are scant and the stress upon my staff, given their unrelenting workload, is significant,” Ms Bolt wrote.

Two months earlier, Ms Bolt wrote to Denyse advising that “it may be up to a further three months, or in some cases six months”, before Denyse’s complaint was processed.

“The reality is that due to the current lack of resources, coupled with the significant and increasing workload of my office, I am unable to estimate with any certainty when your matter will be finalised,” she wrote.